Lourdes' Prayer
by ebi pers
Summary: Lourdes reflects on her situation and on those around her as she sits in bed and prays each night...


**A/N: I'm so happy that **_**Falling Skies **_**got a second season! With **_**Terra Nova**_** cancelled, this show is my saving grace and my last hope that quality science fiction can still be well-received by audiences. It tells a unique, brilliant, enthralling story. Anyway, if you haven't watched it yet, watch it now! Check your listings (in the US it's on TNT). I was catching up with the show yesterday ahead of its season premiere (which I have yet to watch, it's recorded on my DVR so please DON'T spoil it for me) and I was struck by Seychelle Gabriel's character Lourdes. This girl is so hopeful despite the awful, awful circumstances around her and the biggest thing that strikes me about her is her devout faith throughout the entire ordeal. These aliens have overrun her world, are trying to kill her, and yet she still manages to have faith. As a fairly religious kid myself (not a Catholic like the character) I find it both inspiring and fascinating. So here, without further ado, is a prayer by Lourdes before she goes to bed. Hope you enjoy, please review. I'll be continuing my **_**Terra Nova **_**stuff but I'd like to jump into **_**Falling Skies **_**as well, perhaps explore the character of Hal (my other favorite). Let me know what you think.**

_In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen._

It's a routine for her, just before bed. Every night without fail, ingrained in her from childhood by her devout, Catholic parents. In Mexico City, arguably a hopeless place especially in their neighborhood where the drug cartels were frequently fighting, God was the one place they could turn without being afraid or forsaken. And so, even though her parents are gone, she holds on to that faith like the lifeline it is.

_Lord, I feel afraid tonight. The skitters and the mechs are getting closer all the time. Help me to be brave, give me the courage I need so that I can help these people. You've put me with them for a reason and I'm still trying to figure it out, but God I ask that you help me to do Your will as best as I can. _

She's always been afraid. When the skitters attacked, she had seen so many die. Her friends, roommates at Wellesley, all either kidnapped and harnessed or cut down mercilessly. And yet she had been spared. Spared for a reason, because now she was using what little pre-med knowledge she had to help Anne and the others. But nonetheless she needed the prayer to keep her strong, keep her brave, keep her willing to go on because without it, she was certain she would lose her strength and courage.

_Lord, I pray for Captain Weaver. Please keep him strong so that he can lead us. Give him wisdom and clarity to make the right decision for everyone. I pray for his daughter Sophia's soul—that you keep her close to you now, where she doesn't have to suffer at the hands of the skitters anymore. I pray for Mrs. Weaver and for Captain Weaver's other daughter, that You help us find them. Be with them, Lord._

Lourdes didn't know what it was like, to have lost a child. She considered herself fortunate that she herself wasn't harnessed. And to add to the unimaginable torment that Captain Weaver must be facing was the fact that he had torn that harness off of Sophia himself. So Lourdes made it a point to pray for him nightly, for his sanity and his health, and for his family.

_And please, God, be with Tom tonight. Help him clear his mind so that he can offer his insight. Comfort him while he's mourning his wife's death and let him know that it isn't his fault. And I pray for Rebecca's soul, that You guide her home and away from all of the horrors we're fighting through. _

There was a special place in Lourdes' heart for the Mason family. She hadn't had the pleasure of knowing Rebecca Mason but if she was anything like Tom, she was sure she would've loved her too. Tom reminded her of her father—the way he watched out for his own, the way he sacrificed everything he had to ensure his sons were safe. It was all reminiscent of the father she no longer had. And he needed her prayers as much as everyone else did and perhaps more because no family man deserved what he'd been put through.

_And Lord, I pray for Anne. Please help her to deal with the struggles of helping 2__nd__ Mass. She's a brave woman, Lord, and I know that you sent her to me for a reason. I want to be as great as her one day. Help her to stay strong as she copes with her family's deaths, and guide her._

If Tom Mason reminded her of her father then Anne reminded her of her mother. Anne was a naturally protective, motherly figure. Perhaps it was her role as a pediatrician and physician, or perhaps it was the fact that Anne mentored her so well. Regardless, she admired her, looked up to her, wanted to be just like her. She was unwavering, courageous, calm under pressure. And Lourdes continuously prayed that Anne stayed that way for the benefit of the people, and for the benefit of her.

_I pray for Matt Mason, who's had to grow up so quickly. He's just a little boy, God, and he's been through a lot. So please, help him enjoy a bit of his childhood. Give him some happiness in these hard times and let him hold onto his innocence. _

Young Matt Mason never failed to remind Lourdes of how desperate things were. Under ordinary circumstances, she probably would have passed young children his age playing in the park, innocently tagging one another or constructing castles in the sandbox. Instead, here he was arguing with his dad over learning how to use a gun. It was a sobering reminder of what things had come to, and as painful as it was to witness, Lourdes never saw such courage come in such a small package.

_I'd like to pray for Ben Mason and for all the other kids who have been taken by the skitters. Their families miss them so much, God. Please…_the tears interrupted her here…_please just bring them back to us. They're just kids, God, and we don't understand why the skitters are doing this to them. We just want them back…_

All her life she had been taught not to make bargains with God. God would take care of her needs if she just had faith, so she asked but she always resisted the urge to make promises. It was so painful to think of all those kids who had parents, siblings, aunts, uncles…And so many of them would never make it home. She never forgot those kids in her prayers, never failed to weep as she prayed for them.

_And most of all, God, I pray for Hal. He's really hurting and he blames himself for what happened to his mother, and to Ben, and most of all to Karen. Bring him comfort, please Lord, so that he doesn't feel alone. And guide Karen back to us, please, so that he can be happy. He deserves at least that much—he's a fighter, Lord. Please don't let him lose hope._

Hal. Hal Mason, with his dark hair, rugged looks, devastatingly handsome features, all more than she could ever hope to attain. And even if he was younger than her, he was already more than a man. He was resilient, and quick-thinking, and confident while she was naïve and innocent and shy. But such a guy would never be hers, so she prayed for him and his happiness. Now that Karen was gone, he was sadder than ever. If she didn't pray for him and his happiness, who would? Didn't he deserve to be happy even if she couldn't be?

_Please, Lord. Hear my intentions and grant them if You are willing. Grant us all the strength we need to endure._

And then, she launched into the prayer she'd been reciting since she could talk, in the original Spanish she'd been taught to speak it in. _Dios te salve, Maria. Llena eres de gracia. El Senor es contigo. Bendita tu eres entre todas las mujeres y bendito es el fruto te to vientre, Jesus. Santa Maria, Madre de Dios, ruega por nosotros, los pecadores ahora y en la hora de nuestra muerte. Amen. _

_In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen._

With one last glance out the window of the school, the aliens' space station visible in the distance, she felt strangely at ease. No harm would come to them tonight, as long as she had faith…

**A/N: Doing my best to get into Lourdes' head. Was it awful? Let me know in a review! And like I said, the **_**Terra Nova **_**stuff will continue on for as long as I have readers (by the way, where did my readers go :( ?) but I'd like to try to get into some of the **_**Falling Skies **_**stuff too—I think Hal and Lourdes are both great characters that I'd like to do more with as long as you guys approve. What do you think? Thanks for reading, and I really do appreciate it! PS: the Spanish prayer is the Hail Mary or the Ave Maria (depending on what you prefer to call it.) The English translation follows:**

**"Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen." **


End file.
